Schooling vs. Education

Education and Schooling: The Mental Fork In The Road Understanding the difference between schooling and educating is important. Many people use the two terms education and schooling interchangeably. Education refers basically to the education system such as: schools, colleges, Tech centers, universities in public and private. The belief is that these institutions are creating original thinkers. The system of schooling uses discipline and motivation as a method to motivate young people to learn. Within the School system students experience frustration when they attempt to make changes or improve because there is confusion between what is schooling and what is education. This confusion is caused because there is often overlapping and contradictory goals and objectives within each system. The term schooling is use as a way of pointing out the historical, cultural, political and social processes of transforming people into citizens and members of particular social groupings. School is meant to determine each student’s proper social role (Gatto page 157). This is a form of domesticating people, making them â€Å"fit in† to whatever the demands of the social group into which they are born and/or live in. You don’t have to learn anything original. What you really learn in college or any other level of schooling is how to navigate the system. Though you may be exposed to many ideas, theories, and discoveries, they are only side effects if you choose to gain the knowledge. Schooling depends on there being an authority to authorize what is going to be counted as correct and worthy of some certificate or other form of reward for conforming. Emphasis is given to learning information and repeating this information in tests that are marked according to the extent that the repetition is faithful to some original text. Schooling is about following norms of â€Å"behavior and thinking† that have been desired by authorities such as: governments, examination boards, and tradition. Memory therefore is accorded prime place under schooling. This method is commonly use but rarely noticed by the population it controls. Schooling can be compared to animal taming and boarder line brainwash. Schooling should be deemed wrong due to its more recent historical associations with controlling, forming and fashioning the minds of behaviors of American youth. The emphasis upon the meaning of schooling is ‘leading' the individual to engage in the teacher's desired forms of behavior. It sounds like we are a collection of domesticated animals. Without the gift of original thought, students are given the idea that they are now an educated person, they cease to be a force of change and movement in the intellectual universe. They are no longer a threat to the status quo, but another piece of the puzzle of our society. You will get a fine job, a credit card, and work your life to promote the thoughts, ideas, and passions of other people. This may suggest that schooling is necessary, but would you want to become another robot. Education can be described as the antithesis to schooling. Education is the process of exploring alternative ways of thinking, actions, believing, and expressing one's self. It is the process through which one forms one's own judgment independently and using cognitive thought processes. Education depends on dialogue between people on an intellectual level. Education is about freedom of thought and action. It means making judgments about knowledge. Education requires Students to ask why, not just what and how. After the why is answered, it requires students to ask, â€Å"what now?! † We all need ‘information' as a basis for reflection. Becoming educated may seem like the opposite; however the idea of schooling comes back into play. Who you can be and what you can accomplish are not so clear cut. Scholars in political economy and the sociology of knowledge have recently argued that public schools in complex industrial societies like our own make available different types of educational experience and curriculum†¦[for] different social classes (Anyon page 174). This creates a disadvantage for the poorer areas. Even if you absorb all the information you could, you would still fall short to the student being educated somewhere with better resources. Man y people who go to school, building up debt and spending valuable years. It is through the educative process that creativity and spontaneity, innovation possibilities for realization and action. Education is a fundamental process for democracy as schooling is a fundamental process for non democratic forms of political organization. Anyone engaged in a process of improvements would do themselves well by understanding these distinct differences and clarifying their own goals and objectives relative to each system. The completion of school is not the completion of an education; it is simply a point of departure. There are dangers that come when someone completes their schooling and makes the mistake of thinking they’re finished. A degree comes with it a grave responsibility to continue a quest for an education for the rest of your life. Within that phase of your life it is time to evaluate what you know and understand. The truth is†¦we know nothing without experiencing it ourselves. This experience, we should be striving to broaden, with enthusiasm every day. In conclusion, schooling and education are to opposing forces that work together. You can either become a robot with no original thought of your own, or a educated individual with the of cognitive thinking. As stated before school prepares you for the system that we identify as the real world. Through the schooling process many great things are highlighted for the benefit of the student to absorb. The student must be willing to take his education as Malcolm X did when he was in prison. He didn’t have the advantages like others may have been exposed to, but her took his education. Teachers should focus more on inspiring the students to want to absorb an education instead of just attending to be domesticated and looked after. The moral to this story is that schooling is unavoidable, but there is a great chance to take advantage of the knowledge that is available. Will you take your education by the horns or just let it push you by? Works Cited Anyon, Jean. Rereading America Cultural Context for Critical Thinking and Writing: Social Class. Bedford/St. Martin's; 7th edition April 12, 2007 Felder, Richard. â€Å"SCHOOLING VERSUS EDUCATION AND OTHER BALANCING ACTS. Educational Research and Methods Division, June 23, 1999 http://www4. ncsu. edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/Papers/ERM_Plenary. htm Gatto, John. Rereading America Cultural Context for Critical Thinking and Writing: Against school. Bedford/St. Martin's; 7th edition April 12, 2007 Moore, Michael. Rereading America Cultural Context for Critical Thinking and Writing: Idiot Nation. Bedford/St. Martin 's; 7th edition April 12, 2007 Rodriguez, Richard. Rereading America Cultural Context for Critical Thinking and Writing: The Achievement of Desire. Bedford/St. Martin's; 7th edition April 12, 2007

Advertisements Exploiting Children

Are current practises of advertising to children exploitative? What restrictions should be placed on advertising to children? Up until recently, parents had been the intended target audience for advertising efforts aimed for children of young age groups. However it is now the children who have become the main focus.The growth in advertising channels reaching children and the privatisation of children’s media use have resulted in a dramatic increase in advertising directly intended for the eyes and ears of children (Wilcox et al. 2004). It is estimated that advertisers spend more than $12 billion a year on the youth market with more than 40,000 commercials each year. The current practises of advertising to young children definitely exploit their lack of understanding and comprehension of the aim of advertising and promotion of products.In the early 1970’s, The Federal Communications Commission originally set out to ban all advertising that was aimed at young children, ho wever ended up settling for a more lenient proposal of limiting the amount of time advertisements were aired within children’s programs and put in place certain restrictions to do with advertising practises (Wilcox et al. 2004). Studies have shown that the age range of 8-12 year olds spend $30 billion directly and influence $700 billion on family spending each year.This can be attributed to a relatively high extent to the fact that 46% of 5-14 year olds watch more than 20 hours of television per week with tens of thousands of TV ads shown per year (Neil 2012). Neil (2012) quotes that a child who watches 4 hours of TV per day over a 6 week holiday period would have viewed a total of 649 junk food ads including 404 advertisements for fast foods; 135 advertisements for soft drinks; and 44 for ice cream products. Until quite recently, advertisers viewed children around and under the age group of 8 as off limits when it came to advertising targets.However, industry practises have now developed and make for greater degrees of age niche advertising (Wilcox et al. 2004). Along with this growth in marketing efforts, there has become a rapid increase in the use psychological knowledge and research to effectively market products to young children. An example of this includes a study that was specifically designed to determine which strategy best induced children to nag their parents to buy the advertised product (Wilcox et al. 004). Exploitation refers to the idea of taking advantage of something you shouldn’t take advantage of. In relation to ads, advertisers are taking advantage of children’s lack of understanding, their innocence and their vulnerability to persuasion (Neil 2012). Young children tend to be particularly vulnerable to advertising as they do not fully understand the intent of advertisers and the process of creating an ad (Gunter, Oates & Blades 2005).Children are not born with any knowledge of economic systems with their awareness of advertising and marketing developing only gradually later in life. Adults too can be influenced by an ad, which is the reason for ads in general, but they are able to interpret the messages in the context of the advertisers’ intentions to prevent them from being exploited, unlike children (Gunter, Oates & Blades 2005). Neil (2012) states that children up to the age of 4 see ads merely as entertainment, progressing to believe advertisements provide information at ages 6-7.At ages 7-8 they still cannot distinguish between information and intent to persuade and once they reach 10-12 years they can understand the motives and aims of advertising but are still unable to explain sales techniques. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (2007) explain that advertisers may create advertisements that appeal to a child’s cognitive abilities. Research was conducted that indicates different age groups respond differently to formal stimuli in commercial, for example colour s attract younger children while message text attracts older children.This uses leverage of children’s cognitive development to entice the purchase of the product. Furthermore research on the language of advertisements, while used to promote products, may be purposefully constructed to confuse younger children at lower levels of cognitive development. Simple correlation research in the US indicates that children typically aged 2-6 years who view more television advertising request more products from their parents. This is known as pester power.It has been found that parents are more likely to buy products when kids ask for them in the shop (nag factor). As children age, they develop the cognitive capacity to contextualise and act critically on the observations made, reducing the amount of requests for products (Australian Communications and Media Authority, 2007). Children who are exposed to TV commercials for toys not only develop the initial idea for the toy but repeatedly pester their parents to buy it. This is exploitation on the arents’ behalf as it often causes parent-child conflict when the parents deny their children the product (Wilcox et al. 2004). Another troubling issue relating to child advertising exploitation is in reference to food ads. Half of the advertisements in the UK directed at children concern food. There are little ads emphasising healthy eating and since the start of television advertising, the largest proportion of ads aimed at children has always been unhealthy food products (Gunter, Oates & Blades 2005).The Australian Communications and Media Authority (2007) detailed the New South Wales Department of Health content analysis which found that 43% of all food advertising was for high fat/ high sugar foods and 36% was for core foods (such as breads, pasta). Additionally, approximately 48% of food advertising in times defined by the study as ‘children’s viewing times’ was for high fat/ high sugar foods . Consequently, children become confused and consider unhealthy foods to actually be healthy. Toys aren’t as controversial as they don’t exhibit the same health implications as do fast food ads.However, over-playing how good a toy is, or presenting misleading information is very unethical as children cannot comprehend some messages. The writing on the screen about disclosures are usually too quick to read or even understand as an adult, let alone a young child (Gunter, Oates & Blades 2005). Wilcox et al. (2004) demonstrates the exploiting nature of advertisers when it comes to tobacco and alcohol. A variety of studies show a substantial relationship between children’s viewing of these products in ads and positive attitudes toward consumption of such products.The studies conclude that advertising of tobacco and alcohol contributes to youth smoking and drinking. Characters from movies and television programmes often attract children’s attention with researc h indicating that the use of real life or animated characters is positively associated with memory and attitudes toward products and has the potential to confuse children as they do not realise they are getting paid for the advertisement so it is likely it’s not genuine promotion of a product (Gunter, Oates & Blades 2005). Another trick that advertisers use is on the BBC.BBC programs are â€Å"non-commercial† but some of the programs have been specifically designed to include products directed at children to make it harder for children to recognise when they are being targeted by marketers. This shows a negative change in children’s advertising. Body image is another major aspect of young children’s lives as they are vulnerable to their self-image (Gunter, Oates & Blades 2005). Advertisements use attractive people to sell products which reinforce the pressures on young people to conform to the ideals of beauty that are hard or near impossible to achieve.M arketing of dieting products therefore appeal to young children in recent times including primary school children. Currently there are regulations in place that have been implemented under the Children’s Television Standards in 1990, enforced by the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal. These include placing limitations on the broadcast of advertisements during ‘Children School Age’ programs (no ad more than twice in 30 minutes) and ‘Preschool Age’ programs (no ads at all).Also, no misleading or deceiving ads, no undue pressure on children to ask their parents to buy something or any unsuitable material including alcohol and cigarette ads, or demeaning/racists/sexist etc. ads(Australian Communications and Media Authority 2007). To further these regulations, many recommendations have been made. Wilcox et al (2004) suggested that while it is impossible to protect this age group from all commercial exposure, it is essential to restrict efforts made by adver tisers to focus primarily, if not exclusively, on this uniquely vulnerable portion of society.They also state that advertising disclaimers used in ads be stated in a language that children can read and understand and be shown in both visual and audial contexts in a time length that is conducive to reading, hearing and comprehending. For example, stating â€Å"You have to put it together† instead of â€Å"Partial assembly required† in toy ads. Gunter, Oates and Blades (2005) point out that advertisers usually argue against any extension of regulations, claiming that very young children, even from the age of 3, have some understanding of advertising.If this is so, it is not enough. A child’s recognition of advertisements is not the same as a child’s understanding of their persuasive intent. Some argue that rather than extending regulations, the most effective way to help children understand advertising is through their parents by informing kids of the natur e of ads. However as children become more independent with access to their own TVs, parents increasingly have less control over what children watch and less opportunity to discuss advertisements that might have been seen during family viewing.As well as the fact that parents often lack sufficient knowledge of regulators and their regulatory responsibilities. These excuses made by advertisers just show how ignorant they are in the potential harming of young children. In conclusion, advertisers know that their efforts greatly influence child audiences. Targeting children below the ages of 8 years is inherently unfair because it capitalises on younger children’s inability to sense persuasive intent in an advertisement.Due to this, children around and below this age are exploited as they take in information placed in commercials uncritically, accepting most of the claims and appeals put forward as truthful, accurate and unbiased. Reference Australian Communications and Media Auth ority 2007, Television Advertising to Children, accessed 6/9/2012, http://www. acma. gov. au/webwr/_assets/main/lib310132/television_advertising_to_children. pdf Gunter, B, Oates, C & Blades, M 2005, ‘The Issues About Television Advertising To Children’, in Advertising To Children On TV: Content, Impact, Regulation, Lawrence Erlbaum, Mahwah, pp1-13.Neil, D 2012, PHIL106 ‘Advertising to Children’, lecture notes, accessed 1/9/2012, [email  protected] Wilcox, B, Kunkel, D, Cantor, J, Dowrick, P, Linn, S & Palmer, E 2004, ‘Report of the APA Task Force on Advertising and Children’, American Psychological Association Australian Association of National Advertisers, AANA Code for Advertising & Marketing Communications to Children, accessed 9/9/2012, http://www. aana. com. au/pages/aana-code-for-advertising-marketing-communications-to-children. html

HR PRACTICE ON GRAMEEN BANK Essay

In any comprehensive work, like this, credit must go to the multitude of people. I am still students and just novice. Hence, I have taken help from different people for preparing my report. Now here is a petite effort to show my deep graduate to those helpful people. First, I commit my selves grateful to Allah for his unlimited kindness and maximum helpful hand in continuing my report preparation. I express my sincere gratitude to honorable supervisor, Ms. Monsura Zaman, †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Faculty of Business Administration, ASA University Bangladesh, for their guidance and valuable remark about the convention of the report. I have come to believe, deeply and firmly, that we can create a poverty free world if we want to. I came to this conclusion not as a product of a pious dream, but as a concrete result  of experience gained in the work of the Grameen Bank. It is not micro credit alone which will end poverty. Credit is one door through which people can escape from poverty. Many more doors and windows can be created to facilitate an easy exit. It involves conceptualizing about people differently; it involves designing a new institutional frame work consistent with this new conceptualization. Grameen bank has taught me two things first our knowledge base about people and their interactions is still very inadequate: second each individual person is very important. Each person has tremendous potential. She or he alone can influence the lives of others within the communities, nations, within and beyond her or his own time. Background of the Study Successful human resource management makes it possible for the organization to acquire the number and types of people necessary to ensure the continued operation of the organization by the†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. So it acts an important role in HR department. As a part of BBA program, my honorable supervisor, Ms. Monsura Zaman, †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.., assigned me to prepare a report on related topic on Human Resource Management course. I have selected our report topic as â€Å"HRM practice in microcredit Sector of Bangladesh (Grameen Bank).†. Executive Summary The importance of human resources management (HRM) practices to the success or failure of organizational development system performance has, until recently, been generally overlooked. In recent years it has been increasingly recognized that getting HR policy and management. In this paper, I take my theoretical point of departure in recent work in organizational economics on systems of human resource management (HRM) practices. Though this program good balance between theory and practice is gained. Furthermore this is Thesis assignment is a vital requirement for obtaining Masters of Business Administration (MBA) program. I worked Grameen Bank’, how they practice HRM on their microcredit sector. Microcredit is the extension of very small loans (microloans) to impoverished borrowers who  typically lack collateral, steady employment and a verifiable credit history. It is designed not only to support entrepreneurship and alleviate poverty, but also in many cases to empower women and uplift entire communities by extension. In many communities, women lack the highly stable employment histories that traditional lenders tend to require. Many are illiterate, and therefore unable to complete paperwork required to get conventional loans. As of 2009 an estimated 74 million men and women held microloans that totaled US$38 billion. Grameen Bank reports that repayment success rates are between 95 and 98 per cent. Report Overview Introduction Background of HRM: Human Resource Management is defined as the people who staff and manage organization. It comprises of the functions and principles that are applied to retaining, training, developing, and compensating the employees in organization. It is also applicable to business organizations, such as acting, news presenters and Models etc. Human Resource Management is defined as the set of activities, programs, and functions that are designed to maximize both organizational as well as employee effectiveness. Scope of HRM without a doubt is vast. All the activities of employee, from the time of his entry into an organization until he leaves, come under the horizon of HRM. The divisions included in HRM are Recruitment, Payroll, Performance Management, Training and Development, Retention, Employee Relation, etc. A human resources management (HRM) professional is responsible for successfully acquiring, developing, motivating, and retaining employees. That is, they are on the â€Å"people† side of business operations, and because people do the work of organizations, a company’s success rests heavily on the quality of its HRM. An HRM professional is a full business partner who adds value to business decisions and aligns HR practices with those decisions. The work calls on you to know about compensation and benefits, labor relations laws, how to forecast working needs, organizational learning, and organizational change. Students’ specialty courses include â€Å"Competitive HRM Practices,† â€Å"Negotiations,† and â€Å"Cultural Aspects of  International Business.† They also select an honors seminar in â€Å"Management of Innovation.† In the classroom and on co-op, students gain the acting base of knowledge and the business expertise that’ s needed as an HRM professional. Human resource management is an effective tool for students interested in helping businesses succeed in a changeable personnel environment. This guide is based on Human Resource Management in a Business Context, and includes links to extra articles, notes, tips and exercises. It introduces you to the essential elements of HRM, its origins and applications. HRM is viewed as an all-embracing term describing a number of distinctive approaches to people management. They help you to understand and evaluate the different and sometimes ambiguous views of human resource management by investigating its origins, explanatory models, technology and practice. Human resource (or personnel) management has in the sense of getting things through people. It’s an essential part of every manager’s responsibilities, but many organizations find it advantageous to establish a specialist division to provide an expert service dedicated to ensuring that the huma n resource function is performed efficiently. â€Å"People are our most valuable asset† is a clichà © which no member of any senior management team would disagree with. Yet, the reality for many organizations is that their people remain under valued under trained under utilized poorly motivated, and consequently perform well below their true capability The rate of change facing organizations has never been greater and organizations must absorb and manage change at a much faster rate than in the past. In order to implement a successful business strategy to face this challenge, organizations, large or small, must ensure that they have the right people capable of delivering the strategy. The market place for talented, skilled people is competitive and expensive. Taking on new staff can be disruptive to existing employees. Also, it takes time to develop ‘cultural awareness’, product/ process/ organization knowledge and experience for new staff members. As organizations vary in size, aims, functions, complexity, construction, the physical nature of their product,  and appeal as employers, so do the contributions of human resource management. But, in most the ultimate aim of the function is to: â€Å"ensure that at all times the business is correctly staffed by the right number of people with the skills relevant to the bu siness needs†, that is, neither overstaffed nor understaffed in total or in respect of any one discipline or work grade. These issues motivate a well thought out human resource management strategy, with the precision and detail of say a marketing strategy. Failure in not having a carefully crafted human resources management strategy, can and probably will lead to failures in the business process itself. Origin of the Report: This report has been prepared as a requirement of the Thesis program based upon the Grameen Bank where my organization supervisor is Golam Morshed Mohammed (Senior Principal Officer, International Program Dept.), and my institution supervisor is Golam Mahbubul Alam,( Assistant Professor, Department of Business Administration, Stamford University). My institute supervisor duly approved the topic decided for doing the report. Since the MBA program is an integrated, practical and theoretical method of learning, the students of this program are required to have practical exposure in any kind of business organization in last term of this course. Scope and Objectives of the Study A clear objective helps in preparation of well decorated report in which other take the right type of decision. So I identify objective are very much important. Our purpose of preparing the report is: To know the human resource management (HRM) practice of Grameen Bank. To identify the various avenues for improving the HRM policies of Grameen Bank To know about the management ability of Grameen Bank. Suggesting strategies to improve the HRM policies of Grameen Bank. This study covers the HRM policies of Grameen Bank along with some recommendations to improve the HRM policies of Grameen Bank. Methodology A sample survey was conducted to collect primary data using two pre-designed survey instruments from concerned groups following an appropriate sample  design. In view of the complexities involved in generating quantitative data for assessing the real impact, qualitative data were also collected. In the context of the unique features of the area an attempt was made to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the private HRM sector. Data Collection: This study is mainly based on secondary data available from the various divisions and departments of Grameen Bank, in addition to these other necessary information have been collected from the relevant journals, annual reports of the Grameen bank, website and publications of other relevant institutions have also been taken into consideration. Primary sources of data: Face to face conversation with the Grameen Bank administrative dept. and International depts. Officers & staffs. Conversation with the clients. Different’ manuals of Grameen Bank. Secondary sources of data: Procedure manual published by the Grameen Bank. Files and documents of the branch. Annual report of Grameen Bank. Unpublished data. Different text books. Web sites. Unstructured data: This data was compiled using information from Grameen Bank branch and centre visits, informal discussions with branch managers, field staff and various management level officers conducted during field and head office visits. Limitations of the Study As a student of faculty of Business Administration, this is my first initiative for making a report on â€Å"HRM Practice in Microcredit sector of Bangladesh: A case study on Grameen Bank†. By meeting with officers, I was really unable to collect enough information from due to their official restrictions. While carry out the study I had to face a few limitations, which are mentioned below: The main constraint of the study is inadequate access to information. The employees did not disclose much information for the sake of the confidentiality of the organization. Since the bank and other companies personal were very busy, they could provide me very little time. The clients were too busy to provide me much time for interview. The time frame fixed to prepare the study report was hard to be met. As a result, sufficient concentration could be given on it, which was needed for a much better study. Chapter 2 An Overview on Microcredit in Bangladesh What is Microcredit? Much of the current interest in microcredit stems from the Microcredit Summit (2-4 February 1997), and the activities that went into organizing the event. The definition of microcredit that was adopted there was: Microcredit: programmers extend small loans to very poor people for self-employment projects that generate income, allowing them to care for themselves and their families. Definitions defer, of course, from country to country. Some of the defining criteria used include- size – loans are micro, or very small in size target users – microenterpreneurs and low-income households utilization – the use of funds – for income generation, and enterprise development, but also for community use (health/education) etc. terms and conditions – most terms and conditions for microcredit loans are flexible and easy to understand, and suited to the local conditions of the community. Three C’s of Credit Character: means how a person has handled past debt obligations: Form credit history and personal background, honesty and reliability of the borrower to pay credit debts are determined. Capacity: means how much debt a borrower can comfortably handle. Income streams are analyzed and any legal obligations looked into, which could interfere in repayment. Capital: means current available assets of the borrower, such as real estate, savings or investment that could be used to repay debt if income should be unavailable. Microcredit in Bangladesh Microcredit programs in Bangladesh is implemented by NGOs, Grameen Bank, state-owned commercial banks, private commercial banks, and specialized programs of some ministries of Bangladesh government. In the microfinance sector total loan outstanding is around TK 248 billion (including Grameen Bank TK 72 billion) and savings TK168 billion. The total clients of this sector is 35 million (including 8.4 million clients from Grameen Bank) that accelerates overall economic development process of the country. Credit services of this sector can be categorized into six broad groups: i) general microcredit for small-scale self employment based activities, ii) microenterprise loans, iii) loans for ultra poor, iv) agricultural loans, v) seasonal loans, and vi) loans for disaster management. Loan amounts up to BDT 50,000 are generally considered as microcredit; loans above this amount are considered as microenterprise loans. LICENSING STATUS OF THE NGO-MFIS IN BANGLADESH The Microcredit Regulatory Authority (MRA), established by the government in August 2006, received applications from 4241 private institutions (NGO-MFIs). But, around 1000 applications of them were found to be very small organizations that had fewer than 1000 borrowers or less than the USD 58,000 in outstanding loans that is generally considered as the minimum initial operating portfolio of a single branched MFI to be sustainable. However, till August 2012 the MRA had approved licenses in favor of 651 NGOs. There are another 210 applications are under process for a final decision although they are mostly small organizations but with some potentiality to become viable in course of time. As of August 2012, 3380 applications have been rejected. Recently MRA has invited new applications for obtaining license to conduct microcredit activities. STATE OF MICROCREDIT IN BANGLADESH In the backdrop of global ‘double-dip’ recession and over-indebtedness crisis in microcredit sector in several countries, Bangladesh’s microfinance sector shows strong resilience and continues to contribute towards enhancement of macroeconomic growth. Bangladesh microfinance sector is mature now and its assets constitute around 3 percent of GDP in 2011. Total outstanding loan of  this sector (only licensed MFIs) has increased by 20.0 percent from BDT 145.0 billion in June 2010 to BDT 173.8 billion in June, 2011 disbursed among 20.7 million poor people, helping them to be self-employed and accelerating overall economic development process of the country. The total savings has also increased by 23.25 percent to BDT 63.3 billion in June 2011 compared to previous year from 26.1 million clients, over 93 percent of them are women. Table 2 shows the market scenario of NGO-MFIs in Bangladesh. The top three MFIs contribute 54 percent of total loan outstanding as well as savings of the microfinance sector in Bangladesh. Two of the largest MFIs, viz., BRAC & ASA, are each serving over five million borrowers. There are a few more developing fast. On the other hand the smallest 428 NGO-MFIs have contributed only 4 percent of total loan outstanding and 5 percent of total savings. Institutional concentration ratio is highly skewed in favor of large MFIs: just 22 institutions are in control of 76 percent of the market share while three largest organizations have control of over 50 percent in terms of both clients and total financial portfolios. Table 3 depicts the scenario of micro enterprise loan, i.e., loans above BDT 50,000, of different NGO-MFIs in Bangladesh. It is observed that micro enterprise loan outstanding is BDT 40 billion which is around 24 percent of total loan outstanding in which the top ten NGO-MFIs contributed around 19 percent. It also shows that BDT 40 billion is disbursed to around 6 lakh borrowers which are only 3 percent of total borrowers. The table expresses that only the top NGO-MFIs are capable to run micro enterprise loan. Selected Indicators of NGO-MFIs in Bangladesh It is observed from table 4 that savings per member has been increasing over the years. In 2006 savings per member was Tk. 1,207 which stands at Tk.2495 in 2011 – an increase to more than double within the last five years. The loan outstanding per borrower also increased over the years and average growth rate of loan outstanding per borrower is around 17 percent in 2011 compared to the previous year. The loan outstanding per borrower has increased by more than 100 percent within the last five years. These two indicators, savings per member (average saving size) and outstanding loan per borrower (average loan size) increased over time perhaps due to the increase in the income level of the poor resulting in an increase in their need for higher amount of loans from the MFIs. The ratio between borrowers to clients (members) remained steady for the last few years, which is within 70 to 80 percent and the savings to outstanding loan ratio has also been stable from 2006 to 2011. Since the total number of branches of MFIs has increased at a much higher rate in 2011 compared to the previous year, the number of members and borrowers per branch has decreased. Substantial rate of increase in the sizes of loans per borrower and savings per member has resulted in a rise in the total loan outstanding and savings in the sector. Consequently outstanding loan and saving per branch has also increased. The loan outstanding amount per branch which was TK 8.42 million in 2010 has increased by 14.4 percent in 2011.

APN Professional Development Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

APN Professional Development Plan - Essay Example The discussion that follows will outline an APN professional development plan as well as give the role of the advanced practice nurse. The APN professional development plan would involve six aspects. First is the attendance of continuing education forums like conferences, workshops, clinical updates and rounds that target clinical treatment. Second, the APN can critically review relevant literature like academic journal articles that are targeting clinical treatment. The APN should after that consider how this study impacts their professional development. Thirdly, the APN can enroll for an academic credit course whose focus touches on their practice. Fourthly, the APN can teach other health professionals by offering educational seminars, lectures as well as presentations. Fifthly, the APN can write publications whose aim is to facilitate the integration of evidence-based knowledge into their practice. Lastly, the APN can conduct research that is relevant to their professional field. The scope of practice of the APN includes nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, certified registered nurse anesthetists and clinical nurse specialists. As a nurse practitioner, the APN can work as a licensed and self-regulating practitioner. He or she can conduct an examination on patients and establish the relevant medical diagnosis through the use of the medical history of the client as well as physical analysis. This nurse can command, conduct and deduce screening studies, checks, and diagnostic processes to evaluate and diagnose problems (Fagerstrom & Wangensteen, 2014). This will enable them to institute management and treatment plans. The nurse is in a position to induct consultation, cooperation and applications for a referral to other health professionals and specialists. The nurse can offer pieces of advice, counsel as well as educate communities, families and patients about the

Critically evaulate the care and management of a Scaphoid fracture Essay

Critically evaulate the care and management of a Scaphoid fracture from the perspective of a Emergency Nurse Practitioner - Essay Example I chose to focus on scaphoid fractures since they are part of the injuries that I am likely to come across as an emergency nurse practitioner (Rutter, 2008). This paper touches on the clinical assessment and differential diagnosis of scaphoid fractures. I will discuss different assessments that a nurse can perform and the diagnosis process that is supposed to be followed when dealing with a fractured scaphoid. I will also look at the psychological as well as the cultural factors that might affect the patient suffering from a fractured scaphoid. I will also include the treatment options available for scaphoid fractures. There are several issues related to the management of fractured scaphoids. And I will delve deep into some of these issues in my discussion. Clinical assessment and differential diagnosis Scaphoid fractures are quite difficult to diagnose correctly since X-Ray interpretations are normally vague (Gunal, Barton and Calli, 2010). This draws to attention the need of clinic al assessment in the diagnosis process. The diagnostic process of a fractured scaphoid needs to be thorough enough to be able to make accurate diagnosis. Signs and Symptoms It is quite challenging to diagnose fractured scaphoids due to the lack of apparent signs that are common with bone fractures. The most common symptom or sign of a fractured scaphoid is tenderness and pain, which is usually accompanied by swelling on the wrist (Elhassan and Shin, 2006). However these signs are not very specific and one might make unnecessary outpatient reviews. In the health facility where I worked, MRI technology was used to a certain the presence of a fractured scaphoid on a patient (Garcia and Holtz, 2001). However, the patient had to undergo plain-film radiographs to ascertain that indeed there was a fracture on the wrist. The first step of the clinical assessment of the suspected fractured scaphoid was to take the patients history (Bickley, 2005). Taking the history of the patient was import ant as it showed the injury mechanism. For a fractured scaphoid, the injury mechanism normally involved: Falling onto the outstretched hand Forced dorsiflexion, with a radially deviated wrist Sometime there could be palmar flexion After checking the common signs of a fractures wrist such as swelling, lack of a strong grip and pain, the next step involved the use of radiographs (Elhassan and Shin, 2006). The lateral radiograph was used to indicate whether or not there was any sign of inconsistency in the alignment of the carpal and distal joints (Edwards and Stillman, 2006). If the patient had positive radiograph results but negative initial clinical findings were treated using cast immobilization for two weeks. After two weeks, the examination was repeated to examine whether there had been any form of healing or bony resorption at the site of the fracture. Emergency nursing practitioners carried out the initial clinical evaluation which in most cases showed the following (Muscari. 2 001): Pain on the wrist Fullness and swelling off the snuffbox, which was a clear indication of effusion Tender palpation in the anatomical snuffbox and scaphoid tubercle Reduction in the range of motion Pronation and ulnar deviation that caused pain Reduced strength of grip When the radiographs failed to indicate the fracture, even when it was apparent there was one, the other option used was MRI. In many health facilities which deal with emergency care for minor

BMW automobiles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

BMW automobiles - Essay Example Introduction: During the 1990’s BMW had managed to established itself as one of the most profitable automobile manufacturer in the world. Ranking right after the BIG 5 in the automobile industry i.e. General Motors ,Ford , DaimlerChrysler , Toyota and Volkswagen. Originally Aero-space engine manufacturer the BMW had somehow manage to position itself amongst the top luxurious and stylish automobile producer competing with the top car producers in the world. BMW by 2000 through its class and elegance made itself actually what it claimed , ‘The ultimate driving machine.’ A style icon BMW had three brands operating under the group name , BMW which was the last contributor to the sales of automobile , MINI a remake and rebuilt version of the famous English style icon and the Rolls Royce. In the mid of 90’s the BMW group acquired the UK owned Rover. This take over did not prove a successful one at all as it brought a lot of financial damages to the group along wi th that defaming the face of the group. Along with this the size of the company and range of cars also became an issue. To tackle this issue Rover was sold. Quandt family’ the major share holder of the group applied pressure on the group to stop over 900million Euro worth of yearly losses caused by Rover. As a result the CEO resigned and a New CEO was appointed. The new CEO faced a tough situation where threat of Quandt family disposing of its share will leave the group open for Acquisition though the group was fair in size in comparison with Big 5. In 2002 Helmut Panke a nuclear physicist took the post of CEO and decided to turn the wheels by choosing aggressive approach so as to increase market share and become market leader. Factors Effecting Market There were various factors effecting the automobile marketing causing the autmobile manufactures to make a shift if strategies. The economies had been hit by recession effecting buying power of customers. Hence they’ll g o for cheaper options. To stay in the market BMW has to Reduce cost but reducing cost mean earning less marginal profits which previously was quite easy to earn. Environmental concerns: Global warming and greenhouse gases are increasing day by day, BMW cars are on petrol which is a contributor to green house gas. Geopolitical tensions: The war in the middle east and the disturbance in the rich Arab world which would be high contributors to BMW sales globally. BMW group has to look for ways to compensate for these sales. Fuel consumption and efficiency: The war in the middle east lead to fluctuations and dramatic increase in oil prices hence making the gas consumption uneconomical for most engines . Purchases in the asian markets for automobiles increased: The economy depressed in the USA and European markets where BMW sales were high but an increase in sales in Asian countries was observed. Porters 5 Forces Model 1) Competitive Rivalry The competition would grow tough as the focus w ill be on Asian markets with their already being rivals there eg Honda, Toyota, Suzuki etc Though they don’t match BMW on the class and elegance scale but these makers are much less expensive then BMW. 2) Power of suppliers There wont be no significant change but there will be more suppliers willing to negotiate terms as productions have been slowed down or cut down. 3) Power of buyers The customers will become powerful as few of them will be buyers

Defending the minimum drinking age Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Defending the minimum drinking age - Essay Example who had served as a president in a college previously. McCardell formed an organization named Choose Responsibility in the year 2006 but this organization and his efforts gained fame mainly in the year 2008. McCardell pushed for the fact that the age of drinking should be reduced to 18 and he claimed that this would provide for far more benefits than the existing law (Cloud 2008). McCardell’s stand has been opposed by many health professionals as well as community welfare organizations that support the society of Mothers against Drunk Driving and they uphold the advantages that this existing law has brought forward with the assistance of different researches and statistics (Dean-Mooney 2008). The legal age of drinking which is 21 years of age has been indicated to be one of the best policies of the United States of America owing to its success and the subsequent reduction in the car crashes as well as the reduction of deaths and other negative effects due to excessive consumpt ion of alcohol. The age of legal drinking which is set to 21 years of age has been supported by health experts. The issue of teen drinking has been a part of the society of the United States since the nineteenth century and this problem has been linked with social as well as health issues amongst the teenagers. It hampers the normal development of an individual if started at an early age and results in problems of the nervous system. The years of teenage are important owing to the fact that these years are essential for the proper development of the nervous tissue and in particular the brain. The consumption of alcohol in these years results in alteration of the normal cells of various parts of the brain which include the forebrain and the hippocampus. This affect results in altering the normal memory of these teenagers and their performance in studies decreases. Their ability of coordination and

Forum Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Forum - Article Example lude  how to  house  them, provision of quality health care services to the refugees, and protecting the refugees from the  county  they are running away from and the dangers that they are facing.   The issue of helping the refugees has complicated by the fact that the hosting countries have got their own policies which they have to  twist  so as to cater for the refugees.  The countries have to stoop quite low and be able to cater for the refugees as a way of promoting the human rights. They have to  sponsor  the refugees and ensure that the refugee camps  are well equipped  and that the refugees are able to get food supplies, the hosting government should ensure that they are remarkably able to receive quality health care services to the refugees and also provide the refugees with adequate security (Hollenbach 78). For all governments to be able to keep the refugees in their countries, they  need  to  put  their policies in a way that will ensure better  accommodation  to the refugees and ensure that their human rights  are taken  care of in a good way (Hollenbach

Careers in Lodging and Food and Beverage Industries Essay - 2

Careers in Lodging and Food and Beverage Industries - Essay Example This explication concentrates on the lodging, food and beverage industries. The food, beverage and lodging industry constitutes diverse managerial careers, which require professionalism and utter commitment. Such managerial positions include human resource managers who efficiently direct, plan and coordinate the administrative duties of the organization. They authoritatively conduct and oversee interviewing, recruiting and eventual hiring of new staff (Davis, 2013). They also consult with ranking executives on strategic planning and pose as a link between an organization’s management of its workforce. Public relations managerial staff creates and upholds an auspicious public image for their clients or employer. They compose material for media publication, plan and lead public relations programs, and procure funds for their affiliation. In both industries, financial manager assume a key role in holding the responsibility for the financial health of the affiliation. They generat e financial reports, direct investment businesses and create strategies and plans for the financial goals of their affiliation. Advertising marketing and promotions managers compose programs to induce interest in a service or product (Davis, 2013). They operate with sales agents, monetary staff members and art directors. Food, beverage and lodging industries have operational managers in place. Their chief function is to assist the organization’s director in the healthy running of the businesses. They have the responsibility to create, deliver and design product mixes that have quality, while maintaining lump sum monetary returns (Davis, 2013). They do this while ensuring that all working prototypes are under critical review to induce growth and deliver outstanding guest services. Food service managers are explicitly responsible for overseeing the daily operations of restaurants and other affiliations that serve beverages and food to their clientele. These managers ensure that clientele derive sufficient satisfaction with their dining experience in the entire food and beverage industry (Davis, 2013). Maintenance managers in both establishments administer the yearly operating plans and establish yearly objectives and goals for the staff and departments, while reviewing work completion for efficiency and adequacy. This ensures accountability in the hospitality industry when such managers are active in their positions. The food, beverage industry has a career opportunity for directors of new merchandise sourcing, who have a chief responsibility to manage and invent new merchandise product lines. They additionally oversee sourcing selections and support new product introduction and production (Davis, 2013). They also levy for rapid prototyping, therefore they ought to have ample qualification handling such technical matters that are critical to the success of the food and beverage industry. In both industries under study, directors of sales have the mandate to develop an overall strategy with a corporate sense including creation of roadmaps for the affiliation. This is for ensuring that the organization acquires significant sales growth by extending sales in the present customer base. The have an additional role of developing the entire business (Davis, 2013)s. From the past to contemporary times, the hospitality industry ensues growing both internationally and nationally,

The closing of the Muslim mind Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 6

The closing of the Muslim mind - Essay Example ‘The Closing of the Muslim Mind’ is thus a revelation that has actually opened a number of thoughts as to how Islam actually fought and battled through the years to survive with the sleight of reason. On the first page of the book, the author writes, â€Å"This is the story of how Islam grappled with the role of reason after its conquests exposed it to Hellenic thought, and how the side of reason ultimately lost in the ensuing, deadly struggle.† In history, there has been a certain time when this religion was better respected as compared to the amount of scrutiny it is made to serve today. In those days, Islamic scholars and philosophers had the higher hand on the normative thoughts that breached the world and opened up to a lot of debate regarding the closeness between Islam and Christianity. The author writes that this was the time when the great leaders of Islam never felt ‘intellectual inferiority’ from others. This book talks about how the people of Islam fear Allah and how their personal free will bows down before Him. The author has also delved into the Shari’a or Islamic law and writes about how reason is overcome by old tradition when it comes to a number of things. He writes about how a number of Islamic scholars preach how to live modern lives by giving people the freedom of their own living, and how the same contradicts when it comes to following the law, or listening to Allah. In Islam, it is written that whatever happens in a person’s life, depends on Allah, or happens because he willed it to and thus, because of the same blind thinking, the author states that a large amount of free thinking was lost due to such contemplation. Free thinking allows a man to live life as he pleases, and not be bound by societal norms that might end up crushing his potential; however, the Islamic law states a number of things that have today brought upon and inflicted a lot of pain on a number of

STRANGERS IN THE LAND PATTERNS OF AMERICAN NATIVISM,1860-1925 Essay

STRANGERS IN THE LAND PATTERNS OF AMERICAN NATIVISM,1860-1925 - Essay Example The discussions herein about American nativism are balanced and so convincing that the book can be taken as a re-incarnation of an unchanging modern American history. The aim of the authors of historical books, such as James, is to make history known to the present generation. History made known is culture preserved and therefore easy value teaching to the current and subsequent generations. John aimed at giving the history of nativism and how it developed into the current patterns in America. The author must have wanted to explain the effects of being anti-foreign: how this vile affected America and its inhabitants’ relationship with foreigners who settled in the American continent. According to Higham (2008), the book aimed at explaining how being anti-foreigners ebbs its way into how individuals’ actions and opinion towards the people deemed to be foreigners (5). The opinions may be political, socio-economic or intellectual. The findings of this book are numerous; they are basically on the unfriendly relationship between the Americans and the foreigners and how the interaction affected the life of these parties. The findings include how the patterns of neglect were formed, how the behavior was normalized, the crisis that it brought in the eighties and the journey towards reversing nativism in the late 20th century. John does not fail to express how the foreigners in America came to regain their confidence after being accepted as part of the population. It is shocking that nativism evolved into racial prejudice later in the American history and the ethnocentric background began to give confidence to the perpetrators of this awful act (Higham 159). Other findings included how America went to war to save other countries from the hands of adversaries while trying as much to maintain unity amongst its own people. This is the struggle that raised tension and slackened confidence amongst Americans (Higham 195) . John also submits how

Philosophy Paper Essay Example for Free

Philosophy Paper Essay One of the most heated debates that troubled the church in the Middle Ages was the question of universals. This question goes back as far as Plato’s Forms. It has to do with the relationship between the abstract and general concepts that we have in our minds (what is the relationship between Chair with a capitol â€Å"C† and chair with a small â€Å"c†? ). And from this, two radical viewpoints emerged, realists and the nominalists. The realists followed Plato in insisting that each universal is an entity in its own right, and exists independently of the individual things that happen to participate in it. An extreme form of realism flourished in the church from the ninth to the twelfth centuries. Among its advocates were John Scotus, Erigena, Anselm and William of Champeaux. On the opposite side were the nominalists and they held that universals were just names, and therefore, have no objective status apart from that which is fabricated in the mind. Nominalists, such as Gabriel Biel and William of Occam (see O section), said that the individual is the only existing substance. Unfortunately, their treatment of nominalism removed religion almost entirely from the area of reason and made it a matter of faith beyond the comprehension of reason. 1 And here lies the significance of the French theologian Peter Abelard (1079-1142). Between the two extremes, Peter Abelard proposed a more moderate form of nominalism. Though critical of the idea of the separate existence of universals, he nevertheless believed that resemblances among particular things justified the use of universals for establishing knowledge. More specifically, Abelard proposed that we ground the similarities among individual things without reifying their universal features, by predicating general terms in conformity with concepts abstracted from experience. This resolution (which would later come to be known as conceptualism) of the traditional problem of universals gained wide acceptance for several centuries, until doubts about the objectivity and reality of such mental entities as concepts came under serious question. Thomas Aquinas favored a moderate realism which rejected the view that universals exist apart from individual entities in favor of the view that they do indeed exist, but only in actual entities. 2 Anaximander (Milesian School): Anaximander (610-547/6 B. C. ) was one of the three key figures that comprised the Milesian School (the three prominent figures associated with the Milesian School is Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes). Together, they worked on problems concerning the nature of matter and the nature of change, and they each proposed a different material as the primary principal. 3 Anaximander seemed to be quite modern in his view of reality. He believed that the world was cylindrical like a drum, and that the earth rested on nothing. He also invented an undefined non-substance, called the apeiron, a neutral, indeterminate stuff that was infinite in amount. Anaximenes (Milesian School): Anaximenes (546 B. C. ), the other member of the Milesian School, returned back to the idea that everything derives from a single substance, but suggested that substance was air. Though it is likely his choice was motivated by wanting to maintain a balance between the two views of his predecessors, Anaximenes did provide solid grounds for his choosing; first, air, has the advantage of not being restricted to a specific and defined nature as water, and therefore more capable of transforming itself into the great variety of objects around us. Second, air is a more likely source of this variety than Anaximander’s apeiron which seems too empty and vacuous a stuff to be capable of giving rise to such a variety and profusion. 4 Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury: In (452 A. D. ), twenty-two years after Augustine’s death, Rome fell, bringing on a period of conquest and chaos, and degree of order was ultimately realized through the emergence of feudalism. The church, which had managed to survive the social and political upheaval, gradually assumed responsibilities that previously had been relegated to the civil government. This involvement in government led in turn to the secularization of the church. Bishops became ministers of the state, and church dignitaries became warriors. In the tenth and eleventh centuries, many within the church were so involved with the secular world that a movement led to the emergence of the monastic life as a force within the church. Those who wanted to escape the temptations of the secular world and pursue holiness were naturally drawn to the monasteries and among those who followed was Anselm (1033-1109), the archbishop of Canterbury. The greatest Christian thinker between Augustine and Thomas Aquinas was Anselm (1033-1109). He was born to a wealthy family in northern Italy, whom, to their disappointment, left home in (1056) to fully dedicate his life to God. Following a period of travel, he arrived at the Norman Abbey at Bec, where he took his monastic vows in (1060). Within a few years, he became prior of the abbey, abbot in (1078), and then archbishop in (1093), which he held until his death. His writings range from treatises on logic to an explanation of the divine inner logic of the atonement in Cur deus homo. Anselm stood in the tradition of Augustine and Platonic realism. 5 Following the tradition of Augustine, he held that faith precedes and leads to understanding, and, like many other medieval thinkers he drew no sharp distinction between philosophy and theology. In his famous ontological argument for the existence of God, Anselm presents a defense based on the fact that it is self-contradictory to deny that there exists a greatest possible being. 6 He claims that the more universality, the more reality. And from here it follows that if God is the most universal being, he is also the most real; if He is the absolutely universal being, he is also the absolutely real being, ens realissimum. He has, therefore, according to the conception of Him, not only the comparatively greatest reality, but also the absolute reality. A reality in which no greater can be thought. 7 Aquinas, Thomas: By common consent the greatest philosophical theologian of the Middle Ages was Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). Everything about him was big. In his later years his voluminous writings, massive in scope, won him the title of the Angelic Doctor. His life was dedicated to the intellectual defense and propagation of the faith, as he understood it. It was during his teaching career (1252) in Paris that Aquinas, being drawn into the critical debates of his day, started battling the objections posed against Aristotelianism and its place in the university. By this time, Plato was known only through the imperfect translations of the Timaeus, the Phaedo, and the Meno. Islamic Jewish thinkers were much better acquainted with Aristotle, and for nearly two centuries they had been wrestling with questions posed by Aristotelianism to religious faith. For Aquinas and his Christian contemporaries the issue was doubly acute. On the one hand, there were questions posed by Aristotle’s way of thinking. On the other hand, there were the answers already given by Islamic and Jewish scholars which were hardly acceptable to a Christian thinker. Aquinas decided to face the problem head on. He made his own study of Aristotle, on whom he wrote extensively. He also made his own study of non-Christian thinkers. He subjected all ideas to rigorous scrutiny, giving due recognition to the truth of ideas, wherever they came from, but giving his own evaluation of every issue, point by point. In all, Aquinas produced about a hundred different writings. His work ranged from philosophical commentaries to hymns. 8 Aquinas’ main works are two massive Summae or compends of theology and philosophy. The Summa contra Gentiles was designed as a textbook for missionaries, and the Summa Theologiae has been described as the highest achievement of medieval theological systematization and is still the accepted basis of modern Reformed theology. In Aquinas’ proofs (what later came to be known as the Cosmological and Teleological arguments), certain facts about nature are compelling evidences of God’s existence. He argues, accordingly, that nothing can adequately account for the fact of motion or change. Rejecting the idea that change or motion is simply an ultimate, mysterious fact of nature neither requiring nor permitting any explanation except God, its Unmoved Prime Mover. Furthermore, in his five arguments, Aquinas suggests that the Christian belief in God is completely consistent with the world as we know it. Aquinas’ arguments, known also as the Five Ways are sometimes referred to as the proofs of the existence of God. But this is not necessarily correct because Aquinas did not try to prove the existence of God by rational argument, but to provide a rational defense for an already existing faith in God. His primary reason for believing in the existence in God is God’s revelation of Himself. Aquinas expects his readers to share the same faith. He does not expect that he will have to prove anything to them first. This point is important because many critics accuse believers of grounding their faith in outdated arguments, such as Thomas Aquinas. It is proper, therefore, to respond to such criticisms by pointing out that they are based on a superficial reading and on a serious misunderstanding of how individuals come to faith. 9 The basic principal guiding Aquinas throughout the Five Proofs is the principal of analogy, which holds the world as we know it mirrors God, its creator. The structure of each of Aquinas’ proofs is quite similar. Each depends on tracing a casual sequence back to its ultimate origin and identifying this ultimate origin with God. The first begins with the observation that things in the world are in motion or change. Second is the concept of causation. The third concerns the existence of contingent beings. The fourth deals with human values, and lastly, is the teleological argument, in which Aquinas explains how the world shows clear traces of intelligent design. Natural processes and objects seem to be adapted with certain definite objectives in mind. They seem to have purpose. They seem to have been designed. Arguing from this observation, Aquinas concludes that it is rational to believe in God. 10 Aristotle: Aristotle’s thought, like his mentor Plato, embodied the concept of arete, which taught that human excellence in all things was an important goal that should direct human purposes. For Aristotle, that excellence ideally exemplified the defining quality of human nature, the pursuit of reason. Attracted by science and believing that the universe could be explained, Aristotle greatly valued the work of Thales of Miletus, and accepted his concept that the physical universe operated rationally and in a way that was knowable to human beings. From Anaximander, Aristotle took the view that a balance of force existed in nature that made things what they were. Aristotle was also knowledgeable about the atomic theory of Parmenides and was intrigued by the question of what was stable and what was changing. Indeed, these Greek scientists had a significant influence on Aristotle’s intellectual search to examine and explain reality. 11 For Aristotle, the world in which we live is the world that we experience through our senses. Unlike those who followed Plato, Aristotle believed that we live in an objective order of reality, a world of objects that exist external to us and our knowing of them. Through our senses and our reason, human beings can come to know these objects and develop generalizations about their structure and function. Truth is a correspondence between the person’s mind and external reality. Theoretical knowledge based on human observation is the best guide to human behavior. And, while human beings have various careers, they all share the most important factor, the exercise of rationality. Reason gives human beings the potentiality of leading lives that are self-determined. Congruent with his metaphysical and epistemological perspective, Aristotle’s ethical theory portrays the good life as that of happiness (eudaimonia). He believed that the ultimate good for the human being was happiness, activity in accordance to virtue. The virtuous life is one in which actions are part of a consciously formulated plan that takes a mean, a middle ground course, avoiding extremes. 12 For example, true courage would be the choice that avoids the extremes of cowardice and rashness. And what decides the right course to take is the virtue of prudence (phronesis). Good is the aim of every action but, given the fact that goods can be ordered in relation to one another, there must be a highest good to which practical wisdom directs us. And if the possession of any good is what makes us happy to some extent, the possession of the highest good is the highest happiness, the ultimate goal of all our actions. 13 At this point, it is difficult to resist the thought that Aristotle’s notion of the intellectual life being the gateway to happiness and virtue is not an shallow one. But, though there are some elements in his presentation that are unclear, this much is clear; that this happiness, which is the possession of the good, is ultimately an act of contemplation, or of  beholding, the good. But to contemplate the good is to enter into union with it. Therefore, if contemplating on god means entering into union with the life of the gods, this is the highest activity of man and his ultimate happiness. The conclusion of the Ethics is one with the Metaphysics, in which the â€Å"divine element† in a man coincides with the â€Å"possession† of god by an act of thought, called contemplation, which is the â€Å"most pleasant and best† we can perform. In Eudemian Ethics, Aristotle says, What choice, then, or possession of the natural goods – whether bodily goods, wealth, friends, or other things – will most produce the contemplation of God, that choice or possession is best; this is the noblest standard, but any that through deficiency or excess hinders one from the contemplation and service of God is bad; this man possess in his soul, and this is the best standard for the soul. 14 With statements like this one can’t help but wonder what Aristotle’s response would have been if he would have had the opportunity to serve the one true God, who is worthy of such adoration and praise. What’s more, Aristotle categorized virtues as either moral or intellectual. Moral virtue, though not easy to define, is a habit by which the individual exercises a prudent choice, one that a rational person would make. Moral virtues tend to moderation, falling between excess and inhibition. They focus on the concrete actions a person performs and the measured sense he has regarding them: â€Å"to feel them at the right times, with reference to the right objects, towards the right people, with the right motive, and in the right way. † A good action thus exhibits due proportion, neither excessive nor defective, but midway between them. This is Aristotle’s doctrine of the mean. Peculiarly, a virtuous action is one that lies between too much and too little. To give another example, in regard to the feeling of shame, modesty is the mean between bashfulness and shamelessness. Not every virtue, however, is a mean, and so not every action is to be measured in this way. Nonetheless, every action should and can at least be measured in its rightness by the virtue of prudence or, in a larger sense, by â€Å"practical wisdom. †15. Furthermore, one of Aristotle’s most significant contributions to the Western world is his Poetics. His earlier works, Physics and Metaphysics contain important statements about art and nature, and Rhetoric, written after Poetics, distinguishes rhetoric as a practical art and has had a strong influence on literary criticism. His Poetics, nonetheless, is particularly important because Aristotle is addressing Plato’s doctrines on ideas and forms he came to disagree with. In Poetics, it was Aristotle’s intention to classify and categorize systematically the kinds of literary art, beginning with epic and tragic drama. Unfortunately, not all of the poetics survived, and it breaks off before the discussion of comedy. Nonetheless, our sense of Aristotle’s method is established. He is the first critic to attempt a systematic discourse of literary genres. 16 Augustine (Saint), of Hippo: One of the greatest thinkers of not only the early church, but of all time is Augustine of Hippo (354-430 A. D. ). His writings laid the foundation not only for Western theology but for later philosophy as well. His three books On Free Will (388-395), set out a doctrine of creation, evil and the human will which was a superior alternative to the type of thinking that had attracted so many to Gnosticism and Manichaean dualism. His response to the Donatist schism in the church set the pattern for the Western doctrine of the church. His writings on the subject of Pelagianism clarified, as no one before him and few after him, the crucial issues in the question of grace and free will. His major theological writings include On the Trinity (399-419), which presented better models for thinking about the Trinity than those of the Greek fathers. Augustine’s book On the City of God (413-416) was a reply to those who blame the church for the fall of Rome, in which it gave both a panoramic view of history and a theology of history in terms of the basic conflict between the divine society and the earthly society. 17 Interestingly, Augustine put forth a theory of time that Bertrand Russell would later pronounce superior to earlier views and much better than the subjective theory of Kant. Augustine’s account of how we can learn language provided Wittgenstein’s starting point for his Philosophical Investigations. In answering skepticism Augustine put forth an argument which anticipated Descartes’ cognito ergo sum without falling into the pitfalls commonly associated with the argument. Furthermore, Augustine believed that philosophical reflection may correct mistaken notions, lead to a grasp of truth, and serve to clarify belief. But rational reflection is not a substitute for the beatific vision of God. For it is the apprehension of God alone which transforms human life and alone satisfies our deepest needs. Though Augustine was deeply influenced by Platonism and Neoplatonism, he never was simply a Platonist. His view of the soul stands in the Platonic tradition, but he repudiated the doctrines of pre-existence and transmigration. Augustine’s view of the transcendent spiritual reality might also be said to have affinities with Plato, but Augustines approach was not an attempt to erect an edifice of Christian theology on either Platonic or Neoplatonic foundations. Rather, it was to state the Christian worldview in a theological and philosophical system that cohered as a unified whole. 18 (B) (back to top) Bentham, Jeremy: In nineteenth century Victorian England two contrasting systems were developed by Jeremy Bentham and Herbert Spencer. Utilitarians Bentham and John Stuart Mill applied naturalistic presuppositions in their worldview. Herbert Spencer applied the concept of evolution. And Ernest Mach prepared the way for logical positivism in his strongly anti-metaphysical scientific approach. The antithesis of the Kantian ideal is utilitarianism, an ethical theory founded by Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832). Bentham was a hedonist. Taking the good to be pleasure, Bentham proposed a new model for morality in his principal of utility, which holds that â€Å"Actions are right in proportion to the amount of happiness it brings; wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness. 19 Utilitarianism is a form of consequentialism. The ends justify the means since actions are judged on the results they bring, not on the person’s intentions or motives. For Kant, the end result was not important in determining the rightness of an action, rather, it was motive. 20 In its simplest form utilitarianism teaches that the right action is the one that promotes the greatest happiness. Modern utilitarianism dates from Thomas Hobbes in the seventeenth century, but its antecedents date as far back as (341-270 B. C. ) to the philosophy of Epicurus of Samos. The theory of utilitarianism actually held little influence until John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) who popularized the term and produced the classical Victorian exposition of the doctrine. Mill used the principal of utility to critique all social, political, and religious institutions. Anything that did not promote the greatest happiness of the greatest number was to be challenged and reformed. For this reason social and religious institutions that curtail individual liberty should be reformed. This is necessary, argued Mill, in order for freedom of belief, association and expression to be safeguarded. 21. Different conceptions of happiness separated Mill’s version â€Å"Better a Socrates dissatisfied than a pig satisfied,† which recognized qualitative differences between different kinds of pleasure, from Bentham’s forthright attempt to reduce all questions of happiness to the mere presence of pleasure or pain. Bentham’s version aims to render the basic concepts of ethics susceptible of comparison and measurement, but this was not the goal in Mill’s presentation of the system. 22 A hedonistic utilitarian like Bentham would say that the sole consideration is the quantity of pleasure that an action produces. A problem with this approach, however, (as if it wasn’t obvious) is that it draws no distinction in principal between an evening spent at the bars or one spent having quality time with your spouse. It all depends upon the tastes of the person. Berkley, George: George Berkeley (Irish, 1685-1753) was one of the three greatest British empiricists of the eighteenth century (Locke and Hume being the other two). Though his father was an Englishman, Berkley always considered himself Irish. He was an early subjectivist idealist philosopher, who argued that all qualities of objects exist only in the mind of the perceiver. His famous theory is often summarized, esse est percipi, â€Å"to be is to be perceived,† and is still important to modern apologetics (due to the method he used in demonstrating the necessity of an eternal Perceiver). Berkley’s argument was that the phenomena of visual sensation can all be explained without presupposing the reality of the external material substances. Interestingly, Berkley was also a bishop of an Anglican church, and was the only important philosopher to visit America before 1900. He came hoping to start a missionary training college for evangelizing to the Indian tribes of New England. 23 Berkley disagreed with Locke in that there is a material substance lying behind and supporting perceptions. He also disagreed with his treatment of the representative theory of perception, that material objects are perceived mediately by means of ideas, and the mind does not perceive the material object directly, but only through the medium of the ideas formed by the senses and reflection on them. â€Å"If we know only our ideas,† reasoned Berkeley â€Å"then we can never be sure whether any of them are really like the material qualities of objects, since we can never compare the ideas with them. † For that reason, he denied the ultimate existence of material substance believing that the Spirit is the only metaphysical reality. 24 (D) (back to top) Derrida, Jacques: Jacques Derrida (1930-2004) was a French literary critic and founder of the school called deconstructionism. His (1966) lecture Structure, Sign, and Play in the Discourse of the Human Sciences delivered at Johns Hopkins University, played a significant role in ushering American critics into the era of poststructuralism. Particular influences on his thought include Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Freud. He wrote prolifically, and had a great influence on not only literary criticism but in sociology, linguistics, and psychology as well. Derrida regarded philosophical and literary texts as already containing the seeds of their own deconstruction. This means that in any work the author unwittingly includes contradictions, blind spots, and unjustified assumptions. The main purpose and task of the deconstructionist, according to Derrida, is to simply bring these contradictions to the surface. 25 Beginning in the Victorian Age, a paradigm shift slowly spread throughout Europe that set the groundwork for modern theory. Unlike the revolutionary movements of the Renaissance and Romanticism, which were in part reactionary, this paradigm shift that marked a radical break from the past had little precedent. Nonetheless, it marked a rejection of long-held metaphysical and aesthetic beliefs that most theorists from Plato to Coleridge took for granted. Until the modern period, most of the great Western philosophers have been logocentric in their thinking, and Derrida is one of the ones responsible for this definite break from the past, bringing forth the notion that meaning is never fixed. Dr. Louis Markos, a Christian Professor at Houston Baptist University, made some interesting comments on Derrida in one of his lectures on deconstructionism. He said that Derrida reads the history of Western metaphysics as a continual search for a logos or original presence. This logos is sought because it promises to give meaning and purpose to all things, to act as a universal center. Behind this search is a desire for a higher reality (or full presence). Western philosophy since Plato has simply renamed this presence and shifted this center without breaking from its centering impulse. Even Saussure’s structuralism sought a center, and though he broke from the old metaphysic, he still used its terminology and binaries. Furthermore, Derrida deconstructs all attempts to posit a center or to establish a system of binaries. Instead, he puts in their place a â€Å"full free play of meaning. †26 Democritus (see Leucippus): Descartes, Rene: The first great continental rationalist27 was Rene’ Descartes (Frenchman, 1596-1650). For it was he who defined the terms and laid down the agenda for the continental rationalist school of thought. But in a sense, the world that Descartes produced, by the exercise of pure reason, was a fairly straight forward affair – Descartes does preserve â€Å"the self† in a recognizable form, as well as both â€Å"God† (even though it is not a terribly human sort of God) and the material world in a broadly speaking recognizable form (even though it might be a material world deprived of some of its more vivid and colorful attributes). Nevertheless, the worlds created by the application of the procedure of rationalism start from some self-evident propositions (like Euclid’s geometry) and then carry out processes of absolute, straight forward deduction from these self-evident propositions and what that led to in the case of Spinoza and Leibniz is something very far removed in both of them from the ordinary understanding of the world. To some extant, Descartes, by comparison with them, is in the business of saving the appearances. Whereas both Spinoza and Leibniz say that what the world is really like is very different from what it appears to the ordinary person to be. Nonetheless, there is still in both cases (Descartes and Spinoza and Leibniz) an underlying reality that philosophy can tell us something about reality even if common observation cannot. 28 His two chief philosophical works were Discourse on Method (1637) and his Meditations (1641). His ideal and method were modeled on mathematics. He is sometimes portrayed as the first modern philosopher due to his break with the traditional Scholastic-Aristotelian philosophy and for introducing a new mechanistic science. 29 In refurbishing the medieval proofs for the existence of God he was drawing upon the legacy of the Middle Ages. Like the Medieval philosophers, he was interested in metaphysics, and to the end of his life, Descartes remained a nominal Catholic. But there is a sense in which Descartes represents a new departure. Descartes (so it seems) was interested in God not for his own sake, but the world’s. God is invoked as a kind of dues ex machine to guarantee the validity of our thoughts about the world. 30 Nonetheless, Descartes takes his place as a Christian thinker by resting cognitive truth on the personal truth of God, and laying the blame for error not on God but on the exercise of the human will. Descartes successors eventually lost their reliance for truth. George Berkeley retains it by tracing directly to God all the ideas we receive from outside the mind and Leibniz by making each mind mirror eternal truths in the mind of God. But many Enlightenment thinkers, and many empiricists today who share some of Descartes’ rational ideals or the correspondence theory of truth, talk to truth independently of God as if it were a self-sustaining ideal and as if human reason were a purely objective and impersonal activity. Descartes’ failure was not in the relation he saw of truth to God, but in the lack of relation he saw between man’s rational capacity for knowing truth and his personality as a whole. 31 (F) (back to top) Fibonacci: His real name was Leonardo Pisano (Italian, 1170-1250) but he is better known by his nickname â€Å"Fibonacci† (filius Bonacci), which means â€Å"son of Bonacci. † A striking example of Fibonaccis genius is his observation that the classification of irrationals given by Euclid in Book X of the Elements did not include all irrationals. Fibonacci is probably best known for his â€Å"rabbit problem. † Leonardo Fibonacci began the study of this sequence by posing the following problem in his book, Liber Abaci, â€Å"How many pairs of rabbits will be produced in a year, beginning with a single pair? †32 The analogy that starts with one pair of rabbits who give birth to a new pair from the first month on, and every succeeding pair gives birth to a new pair in the second month after their birth. Fibonacci shows that this leads to the sequences 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, and so on. As one can see, each term is the sum of the two previous terms. For example, 2 + 3 = 5 and 3 + 5 = 8, and the farther and farther you go to the right of this sequence, the ratio of a term to the one before it will get closer and closer to the Golden Ratio. Additionally, this same principal also applies to that of the Golden rectangle. The connection between the Golden Ratio and the Fibonacci series is fascinating, and is very simple to understand. If you take a Golden Rectangle, and cut off a square with side lengths equal to the length shorter to the rectangle side, then what remains is another Golden Rectangle. This could go on forever. You can just keep cutting off these big squares and getting smaller and smaller Golden Rectangles. Consequently, the idea with the Fibonacci series is to do the same thing in reverse. You start with a square (1 by 1), find the longer side, and then add a square of that size to the whole thing to form a new rectangle. Therefore, when we start with a (1 by 1) square the longest side is one, so we add another square to it. As a result, we have accumulated a (2 by 1) rectangle. Then the longest side is 2, so we connect a (2 by 2) square to our (2 by 1) rectangle to get a (3 by 2) rectangle. As this continues, the sides of the rectangle will always be a successive Fibonacci number, and eventually the rectangle will be very close to a Golden Rectangle. To translate in more illustrative terms, the ratio of two successive numbers in the Fibonacci series, as aforementioned, if divided by each number before it, will result in the following series of numbers; 1/1 = 1, 2/1 = 2, 3/2 = 1. 5, 5/3 = 1. 666, 8/5 = 1. 6, 13/8 = 1. 625, 21/13 = 1. 61538. The ratio that is settling down to a particular value is the golden ratio or the golden number, which has a value of approximately 1. 618034. 33 Fichte, Johann Gottlieb: Johann Gottlieb Fichte (German, 1762-1814) was one of the major figures in German philosophy in between Kant and Hegel. He was regarded as one of Kant’s most talented philosophers, but later developed a system of his own transcendental philosophy called the Wissenschaftslehre. Fichte had immense influence on his contemporaries, especially during his professorship at the University of Jenna, a position he held for five years (1794-1799) before taking up a profes.

Implications For Maximising Pupil Learning Education Essay

Implications For Maximising Pupil Learning Education Essay Adults play an important role in extending and enhancing childrens learning. Research has shown that adult involvement, from both parents and teachers, is a key factor in improving childrens academic attainment as well as their behaviour towards learning (Desforges Abouchaar, 2003). The parents are the prime educators for a child until they reach the early years setting where teachers then begin to take on the main role of teaching. It is clear from research that both teachers and parents have important roles to play in the education of a child (Desforges Abouchaar, 2003 and Department for Children, Schools and Families, 2008). Although research has shown that teachers and parents have an impact on childrens education what is less clear is the impact that other classroom based staff and in particular teaching assistants have on their learning. Since 1997 the number of teaching assistants present in classrooms in the UK has trebled (Blatchford et al, 2012) and the number of teaching assistants has been steadily rising since the introduction of the SEN Code of Practice in 1994 which required additional support staff to assist with SEN children accessing mainstream schools (Blatchford et al, 2011). In 1998 the National Literacy Strategy (NLS) was introduced and a year later the National Numeracy Strategy (NNS) was launched. These drives involved significant input from teaching assistants and led to an increase in their responsibilities. Reports from Ofsted indicate that teaching assistants continue to play an important and effective role in the daily mathematics lessons and the literacy hour (Ofsted, 2003, pg. 4). This, therefore, highlights their value and effectiveness in delivering learning in schools. The introduction of the National Workforce Agreement (NWA), raising standards and tackling teacher workload, (Department for Education and Skills, 2003a) also aimed to raise standards and tackle the workload of teachers by increasing the number of teaching assistants in schools. This rapid increase in teaching assistant numbers in schools has been a cause of concern and research into the impact of teaching assistants on childrens learning has begun to become more evident. Most recently, the findings of the Deployment and Impact of Support Staff (DISS) project has raised concerns about the deployment of teaching assistants, their impact on childrens learning and has highlighted the need for further research (Blatchford et al, 2009a). The main assumption was that the increase in teaching assistant numbers would be beneficial to maximising pupil learning (Brown Harris, 2010 Blatchford et al, 2007). However, there is currently little systematic evidence available to confirm whether teaching assistants have a positive impact on pupil outcomes (Blatchford et al, 2011 and Alborz et al, 2009 and Rubie-Davies et al, 2010). The increasing and changing role of teaching assistants in classrooms is of importance as they have both a direct and indirect impact on childrens learning. This essay will focus on the role of teaching assistants and their impact on pupil learning. Firstly, this essay will define and review the role of the teaching assistant and what is meant by effective learning. It will then go on to critically review the current research on the impact of teaching assistants on individuals, the class as a whole and whether they are maximising or holding back pupil learning and progress. The Role of the Teaching Assistant It is apparent that there is confusion as to what the role of the teaching assistant is and there is still a lack of clarity and consensus as to how they should be utilised in schools (Blatchford et al, 2012 and Butt Lance, 2009). Teaching assistants have been prompted to take on more teaching roles in recent years and the publication of the Excellence and Enjoyment document in 2003 has encouraged the use of teaching assistants in teaching whole classes, which has added to the confusion of the role (Department for Education and Skills, 2003b). The Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) guide suggests that teaching assistants have four areas of work in supporting the school, the curriculum, the teacher and the pupil (DfEE, 2000). In 2001 the Secretary of State also suggested that the work of teaching assistants should include supervising classes, and working with small groups (HMI, 2002). In school X the definition of the role of the teaching assistant was defined as being to work alongside teachers in the classroom and help pupils with their learning on an individual or group basis (School X Role of the Teaching Assistant). The role of the teaching assistant has clearly moved from acting as a classroom helper to a direct role in supporting teaching and learning in the classroom (Vincett et al, 2005 Groom, 2006). The lack of coordination and training for teaching assistants was transformed in the DfES (2004) document which announced plans for vocational qualifications and introduced training for the higher level teaching assistant (HLTA)(Vincett et al, 2005). The HLTA responsibilities in school X were to plan and deliver learning activities under the direction of a teacher and assess, record and report on pupils progress (School X Role of the Higher Level Teaching Assistant). The range of responsibilities and the lack of clarity of what is involved in these different roles can create confusion. Teaching assistants work in a variety of roles in the clas sroom working directly with small groups, individuals and in some cases taking intervention programmes. The role of the teaching assistant and how they impact on the pupil ranges from school to school and although much of the research available suggests that teaching assistants are in fact hindering pupil progress there is some evidence that they are assisting and maximising pupil learning (Brown Harris, 2010). This essay will focus solely on the role of the teaching assistant and whether their presence maximises pupil learning. There are a variety of different terms used to describe staff that are in paid employment and assist in supporting the teacher; these include learning support assistant, paraprofessional, teaching assistant, and classroom support assistant. The DfEE states that teaching assistant is the preferred generic term (DfEE, 2000, p.3) and this essay will use the term teaching assistant to refer to all staff that support the class teacher. Effective Learning Learning is a complex and dynamic term as there are a number of different learning styles and theories about how we learn (Arthur Cremin, 2010). Learning is individual to every person and the consensus seems to be that it occurs when we assimilate knowledge through our experiences in life (Arthur Cremin, 2010 and Pritchard, 2009). The learning process does not necessarily take place in the classroom environment and it is a continuous process throughout our lives (Pritchard, 2009). Research suggests that everyone has a preferred learning style and this is the way in which we are able to learn most effectively (Pritchard, 2009). Therefore, for learning to be effective it needs to be presented in a number of different learning styles so that each individual has the opportunity to learn using their own preferred learning style. Provision also needs to be made for the sharing of ideas and concepts by the use of talk which is vital if effective learning is to take place (Arthur Cremin, 2010). In terms of learning, the three main things which were found to influence pupil progress were teaching skills, professional characteristics and the classroom climate (Haymcber, 2000). For learning to be effective in the classroom children need the opportunity in all of these areas to learn using their preferred learning style so teachers must be aware of the children in their class and use a range of strategies to promote effective learning. Essentially, effective learning can be defined in the context of this essay as being the most efficient way of concepts and knowledge being assimilated by the child. Reducing Teacher Workloads The primary expectation of the NWA was that the increase in teaching assistant numbers would release teachers from their clerical tasks so that they could focus on teaching and increasing standards (Blatchford et al, 2012). Butt Lance (2009) found that teachers agreed that their workloads had been reduced by 79% in 2009 due to the increase of teaching assistants who took over many of the clerical day to day tasks. Teachers were also found to consistently describe teaching assistants as having a positive effect on their job satisfaction (Webster et al, 2010). In school X the class teacher in Year 5 routinely commented on the benefits of having a teaching assistant in the classroom. She also described the teaching assistant as being worth her weight in gold. This was due to the amount of clerical work that the teaching assistant took away from the teachers role allowing her to do more teaching. This indicates that teachers are, therefore, able to concentrate more time on effective tea ching and planning for different learning styles which in turn maximises pupil learning. However, other research has not found this to be the case (HMI, 2002). HMI (2002) found that teachers workloads had actually increased as a result of having the responsibility for planning for the teaching assistant and managing them. In school X the teaching assistant in Year 6 was responsible for noting evidence of childrens talk for assessing pupil progress (APP) during the lesson. Although this allowed the teacher more freedom to focus his energies on teaching and planning for the lesson he also had to plan in extra time to meet with the teaching assistant so that they could discuss the progress and next steps for specific children. In this instance although the teaching assistant was meant to be freeing up time for the teacher by taking away some of the clerical tasks the teacher was, in fact, having to create extra time to review and reflect with the teaching assistant. Therefore, this see ms to go against the NWAs aim to reduce teachers workloads. The Presence of Teaching Assistants in the Classroom There is also research available that indicates that the presence of a teaching assistant in the classroom has a positive impact on pupil learning as they become more focused and there is a general reduction in the amount of teacher talk dealing with negative behaviour (Brown Harris, 2010 and Blatchford et al, 2009a and Bassett et al, 2011 and Webster et al, 2010). Blatchford et al (2007) found that more attention was paid to the teacher when a teaching assistant was present in the classroom. This in turn led to more individualised attention from the teacher when the teaching assistant was present and more on task behaviour. Although not directly related to maximising pupil learning it does suggest that when a teaching assistant is present in the classroom there is more on task behaviour which in turn leads to a better learning environment (Blatchford et al, 2007). In school X the class teacher felt that the role of the teaching assistant was primarily to deal with the behaviour of the most challenging pupils so that she could teach the rest of the class. In this scenario the teaching assistant was maximising learning for the rest of the class by allowing the teacher to continue teaching without any disruptions to the lesson. However, this is only one example of how teaching assistants are utilised in class and not all schools would necessarily use their teaching assistant in this way. Brown Harris (2010) also support the idea that teaching assistants increase attainment levels as they found a positive correlation between the increase in teaching assistants in schools and rising attainment levels. However, the study primarily looked at the relationship between expenditure on staff and changes in attainment without considering other external factors which may have influenced the results (Brown Harris, 2010). In contrast, Finn et al (2000) and Reynolds Muijs (2003) both reported that there was no effect on pupil learning when a teaching assistant was present in the classroom. It could be argued that although the presence of the teaching assistance has an impact on the learning environment how they are deployed and utilised in the lesson is what really impacts on maximising pupil learning. The Individual Child Although not always the case, teaching assistants are generally allocated to a particular individual on a one to one basis if they have SEN or behavioural issues (Webster et al, 2010). An overview of the literature by Farrell et al, (2010) suggests that teaching assistants can have a positive impact in raising academic achievement of groups of pupils with learning difficulties provided that they are deployed and trained effectively. Alborz et al, (2009) and Blatchford et al, (2009a) both support the suggestion that teaching assistants are essential for the integration of SEN pupils within mainstream schools. Alborz et al, (2009) found that out of the 14 studies four showed that teaching assistants have a positive impact on SEN in maintaining their engagement and supporting them with communicating with peers. This links into Maslows hierarchy of needs as the teaching assistant may be providing the child with the emotional support such as raising the childs confidence and self esteem. The teaching assistant therefore plays a vital role in the childs development as the child can only move onto the next stage of higher order learning once the other stages have been met (Maslow, 1943). In addition, Woolfson Truswell (2005) assessed the changes in attitudes of pupils rather than solely looking at attainment levels in a small scale sample and found that the teaching assistants enhanced the quality of learning experiences and had a positive impact on the personal and social development of the children. This can be explained partly by Maslows hierarchy of needs as the child is receiving the emotional support that they require to move on to higher order levels. Some children may find working in larger groups or speaking out in front of others difficult and the teaching assistant can help to support and encourage them to engage in the lesson. This, therefore, allows the child to access the lessons and in turn encourage their learning by becoming more confident in their o wn ideas. Teaching assistants also provide increased attention and promote a more active role in the interaction of questioning by the teacher. The teaching assistant can also increase whole class engagement during lessons and maximise the learning outcome of the lesson. In this way the teaching assistant is assisting in the scaffolding of the learning by providing a more knowledgeable other that the child can interact with (Bruner, 1986). This extended interaction between an adult and the pupil also provides an enhanced opportunity for learning. As Vygotsky says, what the child is able to do in collaboration today he will be able to do independently tomorrow (Vygotsky, 1978, p.  211). This supports the notion that by being supported by the teaching assistant and having the extended interaction they will be able to develop their learning so that eventually they will be able to carry out the task unaided. In contrast to this, Alborz et al, (2009) suggest that in some cases there was too much reliance on the teaching assistant and this undermined the opportunity for self determination. Much of the research available indicates a negative trend for those children that receive extra support compared to similar children who had less support (Blatchford et al, 2011 Giangreco Broer 2007 Giangreco et al, 2005). In this case it is difficult to determine what similar means especially as research has shown that everyone has a different learning style. Therefore, the research may have been comparing children who actually had different learning styles which may explain the trend. In other studies children who had one to one support were found to be over reliant on their teaching assistant for support and assistance with their work (Giangreco Broer, 2007 Giangreco et al, 2005). Vincett et al, (2005) went on to describe the relationship between the teaching assistant and the child as Velcro syn drome (Vincett et al, 2005, pg.5). The presence of the teaching assistant on a one to one basis may, lead to less effective learning as the presence of the teaching assistant reinforces to the child that they are different and are in need of additional support. Instead of maximising pupil learning it appears that working on a one to one basis reinforces to the child that they are only able to work at this one level. The lack of pupil progress can be explained by Bruners theory of scaffolding which is based on Vygotskys premise that learning is socially constructed (Vygotsky, 1978). The scaffolding process refers to the assistance of support that enables a child to complete a task which they are unable to manage by themselves (Bruner, 1986). It is important that the teaching assistant who is assisting the child in carrying out the task removes the support so that the child can function independently. It could be argued that although teaching assistants are providing the necessary sca ffolding for the child to complete the work they are unlikely to remove the support and allow the child to become independent as they are more concerned with the quantity of work that is produced rather than the process of learning. In some cases and particularly in school X the teaching assistants were more focused on the quantity of work that was completed rather than the learning and thinking skills that were taking place. During a maths lesson on mental subtraction strategies the teaching assistant advised a group of children to use the written method so that they could get through the work quicker. In this case the teaching assistant, although trying to be helpful, undermined the learning that the teacher was trying to promote. In this example the teaching assistant did not effectively maximise pupil learning but instead created a barrier to their learning by providing them with a quicker solution rather than scaffolding their learning. When children are working on a one to one basis with the teaching assistant there is also less contact time between the teacher and the child. The child working on a one to one basis is therefore missing out on important interactions with the teacher. Blatchford et al, (2009b) found that the amount of contact time with the teacher declined when teaching assistants were present. This may hinder academic progress as they are not getting the teacher talk which is very important in learning. However, those children that are assigned a teaching assistant are generally more in need of assistance than those who are not assigned one and this may explain why even with support they are not progressing as well. In addition, Fraser Meadows (2008) found that children view the role of a teaching assistant as useful and important to their learning because they help them with their work and are able to explain things more clearly to them. Fraser Meadows (2008) also found that those children who di d not work directly with the teaching assistant found that the teaching assistant improved the teaching in the classroom as it freed up the teacher to do more teaching with other groups. In a sense teaching assistants are maximising the learning for the other children in the class by allowing the teacher to focus more attention on the rest of the class. Webster et al, (2011) put forward the wider pedagogical role model to interpret results of teaching assistants and their impact on pupil progress. Teaching assistants can unintentionally separate the pupil from the teacher and although they receive interactions from the teaching assistant they are not always of the same quality as that of the teacher (Webster et al, 2011). In the study by Webster et al, (2011) teachers were found to open up talking situations and to provide an environment which allowed questioning whereas teaching assistants more commonly closed down talk. This is of great concern as Wilkinson Silliman (2000) point out To a great extent the language used by teachers and pupils in the classrooms determines what is learned and how learning takes place. (Wilkinson Silliman, 2000, pg.37) Teaching assistants are not as highly trained as teachers in the pedagogy of talk and these interactions and the quality of talk that children receive is very important in maximising l earning. Although there are clear benefits of assigning children to a teaching assistant so that they are able to access the curriculum, the support can sometimes be restrictive. It is clear that teaching assistants should be carefully considered when working on a one to one basis with a child and be well trained and deployed so that they can maximise the childs learning effectively and not unintentionally restrict their learning. Pedagogical Role Research has shown that teaching assistants are spending an increased amount of time in a direct pedagogical role with children in the classroom (Blatchford et al, 2011 and Blatchford et al, 2009a and Blatchford et al, 2009b and Butt Lance, 2009). Rubie-Davies et al, (2010) reviewed the nature of talk between teaching assistants and children and compared it with the nature of talk between teachers and children. The analysis was general and only included a small sample but it did show that there were some similarities in the type of talk experienced by children. However, it also showed there were some major differences in the type of talk. While teachers spent time explaining concepts and questioning children, teaching assistants tended to provide the pupils with the answers and in some cases completed the work for them (Rubie-Davies et al, 2010). In this case teaching assistants are not allowing the child to maximise their learning by building up their own thinking. The research als o indicates that that the dialogue between the teaching assistant and the pupil is more concerned with the communication of knowledge rather than allowing pupils to come up with their own thinking (Rubie-Davies et al, 2010). This dialogue does not allow the sharing and development of ideas which children require so that they can build their own personally constructed ideas. Teachers on the other hand tended to engage in more dialogic teaching which allows the pupil to engage in thinking (Rubie-Davies et al, 2010). Alexander (2008) has clearly stated that talk is arguably the true foundation of learning. (Alexander, 2008, pg.9) If this is the case then it is clear that teaching assistants need to be better trained in effective talk so that they are promoting learning through discussion of new ideas rather than closing down talk. During a science lesson in school X the teacher used higher order questioning to engage the children in dialogic talk. The teacher also scaffolded the talk b ut as the children began to come up with their own concepts and ideas he took on a more passive role in the talk. This links in with Bruners concept of scaffolding as understanding and learning can only be attained with the guidance of a more knowledgeable other, which in this case was the teacher (Bruner, 1986). On the other hand, the teaching assistant was more concerned with correcting the childrens misconceptions and gave them the answer to the question rather than letting them talk to each other and to eventually construct their own thinking. Group Work Teaching assistants that work with small groups allow the teacher to provide differentiated and targeted learning support in the classroom. This therefore allows all the children to maximise their learning as every group is being encouraged to achieve their potential. In many cases teaching assistants are generally found to be placed with the lower ability groups and these children spend less time being taught by a qualified teacher (Ofsted, 2010). A report by HMI (2002) stated its concern over the very common problem that the least qualified people are often working with the most demanding pupils and that teaching assistants are rarely used to support and challenge the higher attaining pupils. At school X the higher ability and middle ability groups worked periodically with a teaching assistant who had excellent subject knowledge in maths to extend their learning. The teaching assistant was therefore, maximising pupil learning by extending their knowledge further than the teacher wa s able to provide. When teaching assistants are well trained and are effectively deployed they seem to be effective in raising standards. Intervention Strategies Intervention strategies are frequently used in schools to assist children in attaining better attainment levels in the core subjects of English and Maths. These intervention strategies are most commonly run by teaching assistants. The Ofsted (2010) report indicates that teaching assistants who were well deployed and trained properly made a difference to pupil learning when they provided intervention programmes. Alborz et al, (2009) also agrees that teaching assistants make a positive contribution to maximising pupil learning in learning literacy and language. However, these surveys were of a small scale and are therefore not a fair representation of all teaching assistants. Intervention programmes are generally run during other foundation subjects and the children are therefore missing out on other areas of the curriculum so although the intervention programme may maximise their learning in that particular subject it actually prevents them from accessing other areas of the curriculum . At school X the children were removed from science to do their intervention programme for literacy. Despite the children getting better APP levels in literacy as a result of the intervention programme their APP levels in science dropped and this was most likely due to the fact that they were missing the majority of the science lessons for the literacy intervention programme. However, although their APP levels increased in literacy it could be argued that this was down to the teacher making sure that what was learnt during the intervention was then consolidated in the lesson to maximise the learning rather than solely the intervention run by the teaching assistant. The conceptual framework model (Todd Powell, 2004) can also be used to expand on this idea as the child does not have access to the whole curriculum and therefore does not have all the elements available to enhance their behaviour to learn. Without these in place the chid is therefore not able to maximise their learning . Intervention programmes are clearly important for those children who require additional support in English and Maths, as without them the children would not reach expected levels. Removing the children from the class for the intervention programme also means that the teaching in the class can focus on the ability range and deliver effective learning. In turn this maximises learning for the children in the class as the intervention programme reduces the class size, therefore creating an alternative to reducing class size (Reynolds Muijs, 2003). The smaller class allows the teacher to focus the teaching at the ability level in the class and therefore gives the children more direct and focused learning. It is clear that the most effective intervention strategies do not see intervention in isolation from the lesson but look to consolidate and develop what has been learnt in the intervention into the classroom (Ofsted, 2010). When teaching assistants are effectively prepared and deployed they are able to offer effective learning opportunities in intervention programmes. Conclusions Current research on the role of teaching assistants and pupil learning suggests that the presence of teaching assistants does not improve pupil learning. (Blatchford et al, 2007) However, Blatchford et al, (2007) warn that we should be careful not to suppose that teaching assistants do not have a role to play in pupil learning as it is not always easy to assess the subtle impacts on learning and the attitudes to learning that result from the teaching assistant being present. When teachers and teaching assistants work in partnership they are able to create an effective learning environment for children. It is important that with the changing role of teaching assistants to a direct pedagogical role that they are trained and deployed effectively so that they can successfully contribute to maximising pupil learning. It is evident that more research is needed in this field especially due to the increased number of teaching assistants present in classrooms. There also needs to be a more clearly defined boundaries between the role of the teaching assistant and the teacher as these boundaries are becoming more blurred (Butt Lance, 2009). In addition, teaching assistants and teachers need more non contact time to plan and reflect on lessons together so that they are able to clearly define and clarify the roles and responsibilities during the lesson (Butt Lance, 2009). It is also important to have the reflection as to what strategies are working in providing max imum learning and whether there are other strategies which may be more efficient. Finally, research and reviews have shown that the increase in teaching assistants needs to be carefully managed so that they can successfully fulfil their role and provide excellent learning opportunities for children. When teaching assistants are prepared and deployed effectively they are able to extend and develop childrens learning. However, whether they effectively maximise pupil learning is an ongoing debate. What is clear from the research is that teaching assistants are taking on a more pedagogical role and if they are to be effective in maximising pupil learning they need to be well trained in the pedagogy of teaching. Word count: 4692